How To Grow Your Business. Part 7

Do you want to grow your business? This second series of articles goes beyond the basic ‘sell more / charge more’ advice to explore your options for business growth. In my role as Editor for The Business Show and Business Startup, I have talked with literallythousandsof business owners and entrepreneurs about what they really need to know, not what a business guru thinks they need to know. This series is the result. Today’s blog looks at how networking could help grow your business.

Networking

Ask any business mentor for a single tip to grow any business and they’re likely to suggest networking. Good contacts are essential for any company, but business owners often overlook cultivating them because time is too short.

Any business can only grow if it is built upon reliable people. And that doesn’t just mean the people you employ – you need to be able to rely upon third parties like your business partners and suppliers to enable your business to function flawlessly. Having contacts in different sectors, professions, and geographic locations is simply invaluable.

Business experts consistently recommend networking as the best form of acquiring new clients and contacts. But many business owners struggle to find the time to network effectively. Successful entrepreneurs spend their whole careers meeting and befriending other business owners, forging enduring relationships and trading favours. You should be no different. Networking is the one business tool that money can’t buy – it’s completely down to you, your attitude, and your pitch.

Take the time to prepare what you want to say and you’ll feel more confident networking. And your new contacts are more likely to want to do business with someone who is confident. Understand what makes you or your business unique and how you can explain that as succinctly as possible. Rehearse your pitch and keep to the point. You can always expand at a later date, when you follow up.

Next: Get Into The Mobile Space

If you find the series – or any of the articles in it – useful, please share them via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, or your own blog. I’d really appreciate it, thanks. If you need professional copywriting for anything from your new web copy to marketing collateral and press releases, I’d love to hear from you. Get in touch today to find out how I could help your business.